


we each have our stories to tell

by Sorahana



Series: Robbie curses the existence of Sportacutie [7]
Category: LazyTown
Genre: M/M, Pre-Relationship, did i mention fluff? this is fluff, i wrote this instead of doing actual work wheeee, just pure fluff, just take the fluffs. take all of it., the boys bonding and having fun, these two are too cute (esp sporty but its a given)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-25
Updated: 2017-04-25
Packaged: 2018-10-23 21:10:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10727319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sorahana/pseuds/Sorahana
Summary: Sportacus found out something about Robbie. In hopes of making him feel comfortable, he went on to show that they were more similar than he thought.





	we each have our stories to tell

**Author's Note:**

  * For [barcelona](https://archiveofourown.org/users/barcelona/gifts).



> so I had three days off, spent most of em writing up fics and this one was requested by the lovely lemonrotten on Tumblr or barcelona! basically, it's fluffs galore and it was an absolute pleasure writing this up! hope this won't get me kicked out of your house <3 ;D

Sportacus found out completely by accident, honestly. He had been patrolling the town, jumping over walls and backflipping down the street when he saw Robbie near the recycling bin. He came to a stop, opting to watch instead of approaching the villain since he was curious of his presence at this time of day. Usually, he would only see him in the late afternoon or evening, never this early.

Robbie seemed to be carrying some sort of box with him. It looked like the ones where you kept lures for fishing. He placed the box on the bench and then turned his attention to the bin. Sportacus was certainly surprised to see the villain scrounge through the one labelled glass and also a little worried. He didn’t want Robbie to cut himself on some stray piece of broken glass.

Still, he silently watched, his curiosity getting the better of him. Robbie looked triumphant when he pulled out a few bottles. They looked to be empty so he was trying to think of what Robbie would want to do with them.

He received his answer when Robbie popped up the lid of the box, showcasing a row of colorful something that Sportacus couldn’t quite see from his position. He then grabbed a cloth, brought it to the lip of the bottle before twisting off the cap. He watched as Robbie gingerly rubbed the cap free from grime and then inspected, holding onto the cap using a pair of tweezers.

Apparently satisfied, he placed it into the box. That was when Robbie noticed his presence. Sportacus saw the way his expression shifted from surprised to embarrassment. He scowled deeply at him, cheeks gaining a red hue before he hastily picked up the box and scrambled away.

Sportacus wanted to go after him but something told him that it wouldn’t be a wise decision. He watched the villain’s retreat, his mind going through everything he had just seen. The way Robbie acted and the box he had with him, it honestly reminded him of himself, which helped the hero connect the dots easier.

Was that some sort of collection, then? A hobby most likely from how tenderly he went about adding the newest piece to it, which he assumed were bottle caps. From the way he reacted, it felt like he was embarrassed at having been caught by the hero.

Not wanting Robbie to feel uncomfortable around him, a plan started to formulate in his mind. With a grin, he flipped back towards his airship. Once inside, he went to his closet. There wasn’t much of anything in it aside from a few random items he picked up over his travels. He didn’t care about that, what he wanted was a medium sized wooden box located at the back of the closet.

It had been quite some time since he last brought it out but the contents inside were still lovely. Sportacus spent some time simply admiring it, occasionally taking one out to wipe it clean. Once done, he closed the lid and placed the box on the bedside table. All he needed to do now was wait for an opportunity to present itself.

The next time Sportacus saw Robbie skulking near the recycling bin, he was prepared. He descended from his airship, using the platform this time as one of his hands were occupied. Once his feet was planted firmly on the ground, he broke out in a light jog, not wanting to jostle the delicate cargo with him.

“Hey Robbie!” Sportacus called out as soon as the villain was in sight. Robbie squeaked out in surprise, whirling around with a deer caught in the headlights sort of look. That tackle box was clutched firmly to his chest, as if it would be pried away the moment he let down his guard.

“What do you want Sportaflop? Here to mock me?” Robbie bit out, eyes narrowing suspiciously once the shock wore off. Sportacus refrained himself from smiling sadly. Did he honestly think that he’d be so cruel as to make fun of his hobby? Briefly, he wondered what exactly happened in his life that this was his default reaction before pushing the thought aside.

“No Robbie, I wouldn’t do that,” Sportacus easily replied, coming to a stop in front of him. He waited until Robbie’s gaze shifted from his face to the box tucked underneath his armpit. “Actually, I wanted to show you something!”

“Show me something?” He parroted, suspicion seeping into his features. His eyes once more went to the wooden box.

“Yes! Since I accidentally found out about what I assume was your collection—“ He ignored the irritated huff and the almost defensive way he held onto the box. “—I wanted to show you my own collection!”

Robbie still looked suspicious but curiosity had mingled in. Despite what he felt, he can’t help but be intrigued with where Sportacus was going with this. The hero wasn’t the type to mock or ridicule, usually wearing his heart on his sleeve. This wasn’t an attempt to patronize or make fun of him, he realized, feeling just a little bit guilty for assuming as such before.

He didn’t answer, instead gazing pointedly at the box. Sportacus grinned, happy that Robbie was showing interest.

“Let’s go sit under the tree there!” He jutted a thumb over his shoulder, lips never faltering from that bright grin. Robbie seemed to flush slightly, mumbling something underneath his breath before giving a cautious nod. Sportacus resisted the urge to pull him into a hug and instead, jogged towards the spot. If Robbie was surprised by the lack of flips, he didn’t voice it.

Sportacus quickly made himself comfortable underneath the tree, leaning back against the rough trunk. It provided enough shade for them while still allowing enough light to peek through. Robbie joined him moments later, sitting down slower with a bit of distance between them. He knew how the man felt about personal space so he respected his decision and stayed where he was.

“So! I’ve been collecting these for as long as I could remember! They’re very special to me and I’ve never really showed anyone else…” his words trailed off, an almost bashful smile overtaking his features. The sight was strangely endearing to Robbie but he would sooner eat a sportscandy than admit it.

It quickly regained its bright cheer moments later. “You’re the first person I’m showing this too!” With that, Sportacus placed the box on his lap. He unclasped the latch before he carefully lifted the wooden lid. Robbie leaned closer, trying to get a better look at his rival’s collection. He expected a lot of things but admittedly, he was taken by surprise by the contents.

“Rocks? You collect rocks?” Robbie blurted out, a hand slapping over his mouth once he realized how rude that sounded. Apparently he cared enough about it to feel bad. Thankfully, Sportacus didn’t notice or didn’t care in his enthusiasm.

“Yup! I always found some rocks to be really pretty. The next thing I know, I’m bringing home the ones that I really like and it just grew from there.” Once he was certain that Sportacus wasn’t offended or anything, Robbie leaned in once more to get a proper look.

The inside of the box had many compartments with each section filled with unique looking rocks. Some were wrapped in some sort of cloth, others were left in plain sight. All of them sat on felt that he had cut out to fit each section, presumably acting like some sort of cushion. From his angle, he could make out a sign plastered on the inside of the lid, worn around the edges and the words faded with age.

 _My special collection_ was written, the handwriting messy and nearly intelligible, like it was done by a child’s shaky hand. That thought struck him like a thunderclap. Had these rocks been with the hero as far back as his childhood? Just like him and his bottle caps?

Sportacus beamed at him before he carefully picked up one of the rocks from the top corner. This one was quite small, had a few bumps but overall looked smooth. “This was one of the first rocks that I collected. I was in the forest near my home—“ Here, his expression turned wistful for a moment. “—and was playing around near this one huge tree when I tripped and fall. At first, I cried a bit because I scraped my knee and then I saw this.”

He thumbed the surface of the rock with a tenderness that surprised Robbie. “I don’t know why it just stood out but then I stopped crying and my attention was on the rock. It felt so large in my hands at the time. Next thing I know, I was bringing it home with me. It sat on my bedside while my Mami patched me up. It became a permanent fixture in my bedroom for years.”

Robbie listened quietly, finding himself feeling a little awed by what Sportacus told him. It made him realize that beyond what he knew of the hero, he didn’t know much of anything else. Here, he just shared with him what was essentially a slice of his childhood. His home in the forest, he had a mother and he cried just like any other kid.

Just knowing this was slowly changing the way he saw the hero, whether he wanted to or not.

Sportacus eyed it for a moment longer before he placed it back in its place. Next, he picked up an oval shaped pebble, its color a deep, beautiful grey. “This one I found a little later in life. It was back when I first started venturing out to be a hero. I landed my airship near this big, beautiful lake surrounded by large mountains to take a break. I was… I think I was just dipping my feet in the water, splashing about when I saw it just beneath the surface.”

Robbie tried to picture the scene but his mind instead imagined Sportacus sitting at the edge of a lake, his feet splashing like a happy child. It was a strangely endearing mental image, one that made his cheeks flush ever so slightly.

“—so what about you?” Sportacus’ voice penetrated his daydream, yanking him back to reality.

“What?” He asked, mentally berating himself for getting distracted like that.

“Do you have any stories about your collection?” Sportacus pointedly look at the box. “I imagine from the variety that there would be some.”

Robbie opened his mouth, an instinctive no on his lips but then he took in Sportacus’ eager expression. His wide smile that seemed to twinkle from the little bit of light seeping through, his blue eyes bright with delight. Suddenly, denying his request felt like the most villainous thing ever. Instead of giving him joy, a heavy weight settled in his stomach.

Robbie released a sigh, wondering what was happening to him before he turned his attention to the tackle box. Sportacus practically vibrated in excitement as he opened the lid, revealing the rows of bottle caps that he only got a glimpse of the other day. Using a pair of tweezers stored alongside the caps, Robbie carefully picked a red cap and showed it to Sportacus.

“This one… it’s from a discontinued soda line. They used to sell it back when I was a kid but then I heard the news that they would stop making them.” Robbie smiled slightly. “I loved it and wanted something to always remember it by. Keeping the bottle cap came to mind and then… I just found it fun to collect it. Different bottles have different caps in different designs.”

He placed it back down before picking up another cap, this one blue in color with an odd hole in the middle. “This one looks a little weird, right?” At Sportacus nod, he continued. “You’d think that this design wouldn’t work but then it had a purpose. When you buy a bottle of this soda, there would be a small metal ball on top. To drink it, you had to push the ball in through the hole, making a loud pop sound. The ball falls into the bottle and when you tip it over too much, it’ll block the hole and prevent spilling. I just found it so intriguing. Something that doesn’t look like much but it had a purpose nonetheless…”

Sportacus smiled sadly, picking up the subtle implications. Sometimes, it felt like Robbie was doing his schemes less for its intended purpose and more to show that he was there as the local villain, that he had a _purpose_ in this town. It was usually the reason as to why Sportacus often played along when he saw past his disguise. He just looked so pleased with himself when he managed to trap him or play along with the kids. Of course, he would love for Robbie to interact with them as himself but… baby steps.

Wanting to distract his companion, Sportacus picked up another pebble. This one was round, smooth and had spots on them. “I’ll let you in on a little secret.”

Robbie looked at him, one eyebrow raised. Good, he was intrigued. “A secret?”

“Yes.” Sportacus scooted a little closer so Robbie could get a good look of the pebble. “This one… is special. You know why?”

There was a rare, indulgent grin on Robbie’s face. Sportacus inwardly cheered at the villain’s apparent good mood. “No, enlighten me.”

“Well… this pebble has helped me… win every time I play hopscotch with it!”

“Hopscotch,” Robbie repeated, a hint of amusement in his tone.

“Yes! I think it’s imbued with some sort of magic because it always lands where I want it to be.” Sportacus brought it up closer, voice dropping to a whisper. “Don’t tell anyone I told you this. It’s my secret weapon.”

Sportacus expected for Robbie to go on some rant of how he’s the villain and they don’t keep secrets but he did something else entirely.

Robbie pressed a fist to his mouth, eyes shut as he stifled a few laughs. His cheeks gained a red hue, shoulders shaking from the force. Sportacus couldn’t look away from this oddly heartwarming sight. His lips involuntarily curled into a small, tender smile. Robbie shouldn’t hide that sweet sounding laughter but he was content with what he got.

“Secret weapon. Okay,” Robbie finally answered with a little bit of a breathless giggle at the end. Wiping away a tear from his eye, he flashed Sportacus a charming grin. “I won’t tell anyone. Your—“ A stifled giggle. “—secret is safe with me.”

“Yes. I—thank you,” Sportacus replied with a start, flushing slightly in embarrassment. The thoughts that crossed his mind just then…

Robbie shook his head, huffing out a real laugh this time – a sound that made his heart skipped a beat – before he picked up a yellow cap with orange sun design at the center.

“Getting this one for my collection took a little bit of work. It was from a limited edition line of soda and they only sold like a few thousands of it. To get it, I had to…” Just like he did previously, Robbie’s voice dropped to a whisper, like he was going to impart a deep secret. “… _wake up early_ in the morning and… _run_ to the store to be the first one in line. That is the only time in my life where I’ll be that active and--" Robbie waggled his finger at him. "--don’t you tell anyone about this!”

Honestly, it took a whole lot of willpower to not laugh at how adorable Robbie looked like at the moment but Sportacus persevered. Instead, he pressed his fingers to his smiling lips, eyes shining with mirth and his mustache twitching in delight as he solemnly nodded his head. “I won’t tell anyone. I promise.”

And just because he felt like it, Sportacus extended his pinky. It was just a cute little gesture he saw the children did sometimes. He didn’t expect for Robbie to hook his own nor that -- after he snapped out of his brief daze -- both of them leaned in to kiss the hole between the index finger and thumb at the same time, knocking their foreheads together.

They let go out of reflex, hand flying to their foreheads. Wide baby blue eyes stared at similar gray ones, their gazes locked for what seemed like forever before they broke down into peals of laughter. Robbie succumbed first, one hand covering half of his lips so the sweet sound wasn’t completely muffled. Sportacus didn’t hold back, laughing loud and free, his heart feeling pleasantly warm.

The laughter eventually tapered off, only small giggles remained from their mirth. Sportacus leaned back against the trunk, his box placed on the ground next to Robbie’s. Their legs were extended, ankles practically brushing from how close they were to each other now. Sportacus didn’t pull away, nor did Robbie and it felt… really nice.

“So… Do you have any other stories?” Sportacus asked, this time receiving a nod. Robbie was relaxed in his presence, showcasing a bit of childish enthusiasm as he pulled the box onto his lap again. Definitely endearing and all around adorable.

For the next half hour or so, they swapped stories of their collection. Some received awed looks, others disbelieving ones but most ended with a smile or a laugh.

(“This cap… I won it in a bet. They thought that I had terrible aim with a slingshot. Showed them whose boss.” A pause. “Though, I may have had to… strategically retreat once they recovered from my attack. At least I got my prize.”

“I got this rock from a bird. Like, I helped out a chick that fell from its nest and the mommy bird swept in and dropped this on my palm. It was like the _best_ gift ever.”

“I accidentally stumbled across this one. It’s a little faded but I like the design. Plus, it made facing that hellion worth it. I got nicked a little from the devil’s claws but I persevered and got it in the end.”

“This one… I, uh, didn’t know belonged to a goose. I picked it up because it looked nice and then the next thing I know, I was flipping away from the angry bird. It was flapping its wings really hard like—“ Sportacus waved his arms, earning him a snicker from Robbie. “—this and it chased until I got into my airship. By then, I couldn’t return it even if I wanted to so I kept it.”

“I like the design of this one. It has purple and orange stripes.”

“My favorite shaped rock is this one! Doesn’t it look like a sportscandy? I almost bit into it the first time I found it!" Robbie huffed out a laugh at that, wheezing out 'Really?' in between the giggles. "Oh, I know it was silly! It was dark and it just looked that convincing!”)

It wasn’t long until Robbie finished sharing the stories behind his collection. They were down to Sportacus’ final rock. Unlike this others, it was very simple. It looked like any other rock, no spots or funny designs etched on it. Though, Robbie could see that this one meant something special to the hero judging from how he held onto it and the way his features softened.

“This one… is my favorite.”

“I thought the other one was?” Robbie couldn’t help but interject.

“Well, that’s true. Okay, so this one is my most favorite. The… favoritist in my collection,” Sportacus corrected, letting it rest on his palm as he showed it to Robbie.

Robbie refrained from making any sort of comment, knowing that by this point, there must be a reason why he chose the plain looking one as his favorite.

“It’s my favoritist because… it’s the first rock I found pretty when I came here. I found it in the grass near the billboard. I was just running past and it just caught my attention. I don’t know, it felt like the sun was shining at the right time, making it twinkle to me.” Sportacus had a pleasant little smile on his lips, looking almost… cute to Robbie.

Robbie coughed, turning the other way, cheeks getting warm. What was he thinking? Villains certainly didn’t think their nemesis to be anything other than, well, a nemesis! But he couldn’t deny that spending time like this, sharing stories and showcasing each other their special collections, it felt… nice.

Sportacus considered the rock on his palm, gaze flickering from it to Robbie before he made a decision.

“Hey Robbie,” he called out, waiting until he received a response and his attention before continuing. “I want you to have this.”

“What?” Robbie looked surprised but was unable to do anything as Sportacus grabbed hold of his hands and placed the rock on his palm.

“It’s the first time that I had fun like this. The kind that’s… not like when I play with the kids. It’s… different but I love it all the same.” He gently pushed until Robbie’s fingers curled around the rock. His hand was quite cold, he noted, but warm all the same. Or maybe it was the pleasant feeling that hummed in his body.

Regardless, Sportacus held onto it a little longer before releasing it. Robbie had yet to answer, simply staring at him with wide eyes and red staining his cheeks. While it made him a little nervous, it didn’t look like he was disgusted or anything so it gave him a bit of hope.

Finally, his eyes snapped to the rock in his palm, going back up to scrutinize his expression. Sportacus ensured that it showed nothing but honesty until Robbie was apparently satisfied with what he saw. Robbie slowly nodded his head, the flush on his cheeks darkening.

“Okay. I’ll keep it… Thank you, I suppose,” he responded curtly, not exactly meeting Sportacus’ eyes. The hero was over the moon that Robbie accepted it in the first place. Besides, he knew that the man was happy, even if he tried to act like he wasn’t.

A comfortable sort of silence lasted for a while longer before it was broken by the crystal beeping.

Sportacus looked at the crystal in surprise, like he was suddenly reminded of his position as the town’s hero. “Someone’s in trouble!” He jumped to his feet, then eyed his collection. Leaving it alone like this while he went off to save someone just didn’t sit too well with him.

Apparently noting his distress, Robbie heaved out a sigh. “Go. I’ll look after it.”

Sportacus didn’t even question it. He flashed Robbie’s the biggest smile yet before he flipped away, heading towards the mayor’s office.

Robbie watched the flipping kangaroo until he was out of sight. Then he looked at the rock in his hand, thumbing the surface with his cheeks flushed. Well, he supposed he could use a paperweight on the drawer next to his orange chair. It had the right weight and… it would remind him of the hero, who was kind enough to give him something that meant a lot to him.

The weight of the rock in his hand felt comfortable, just like how he felt around Sportacus before. Robbie secretly hoped that there could be more moments like these in the future. It was honestly the most fun he had in quite some time that didn't involve disguises or creating new inventions. It was just two people who were more similar than he thought exchanging tales of their respective collections.

Maybe he could start searching those rare caps he was thinking about so he would have more stories to share with him. It would involve a lot of work but… he supposed he wouldn’t mind doing so for whatever this... pleasant thing was.

**Author's Note:**

> in the end robbie gives sport one of his bottlecaps. sporty just about hug robbie from happiness. it gets placed in the previous spot of the rock he gave to robbie. these two are too cute send help


End file.
